He was preceded in death by his parents Harry and Myrtle Copeland, his brother Lawrence Copeland, and his sister Eloise (Copeland) Guinta, his wife of 42 years Margaret Helen Copeland, and his wife of 20 years Loretta (Grayson) Copeland. He is survived by his brother Robert Copeland and his wife Regula Frey, his children Pamela (Copeland) Jennett and her fiancé Dan Greene, Mark Copeland and Patricia Copeland, his granddaughter Kathryn Jennett and great-grandchildren Benjamin Jennett and Ariann McClain, as well as cousins, nieces, nephews, and extended family.
Ben was a loving husband, father, grandfather, uncle, and friend to all. His faith was his foundation and his family was his greatest joy in life.
Ben was born August 3, 1925 in Chicago, Illinois. He was an all-star athlete at Morgan Park High School and later graduated from the University of Iowa with an Aeronautical Engineering degree, after serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. While at college, he was very popular on campus because he had a car - one that he restored from scrap parts that he salvaged from a vacant lot. Ben was known by family and friends as Mr. Fix-It, he could repair just about anything - and probably had the spare part in his garage.
Ben was a 32nd degree Mason, actively supported a number of charities, loved to fish, family movie nights, play cards, and in younger years bowl, golf, and on occasion "cut a rug". He was a devout Christian and was actively involved in the formation of several churches. For a church in Cedar Rapids, Iowa he built their first pulpit in his basement. He was a man that lived the principals of his faith every day, and was a role model to his family, friends and colleagues.
